Princeton vs. Colgate preview

Five days after losing 38-0 to Columbia in its Ivy League opener, Princeton will return to the field to take on undefeated Colgate, one of the hottest teams in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). The Raiders, ranked No. 23 in one FCS poll, feature formidable running backs Jordan McCord and Nate Eachus, each of whom averages more than 100 rushing yards per game. Colgate’s offense has steamrolled opponents, gaining nearly 450 yards per contest.

Princeton’s offense, on the other hand, is searching for answers. In three games, the Tigers’ attack has scored just two touchdowns (the Princeton defense also scored one against Lehigh). New quarterback Tommy Wornham ’12 has completed 45.4 percent of his passes (44 for 97), and the struggling running game will be without star tailback Jordan Culbreath ’10 for the rest of the season.

Head coach Roger Hughes said that he expects his team will be eager to move past the Columbia game. “While I don’t like to lose with the score the way it was, maybe it’s easier for a team to bounce back from this loss,” he said. “It’s easier to turn the page, say we had a bad game, and go on.”

History

Colgate’s Jacob Stein kicked a 33-yard field goal in the closing seconds to beat Princeton 27-24 in Hamilton, N.Y., last October. The Raiders have won four of their last five meetings with the Tigers, but Princeton has a slim lead in the all-time series with a 25-23-1 record. The Tigers won three of the five night games that they played in the last two seasons.

Players to watch

Princeton nose tackle Matt Boyer ’11

Playing nose tackle in the Tigers’ 3-4 defense is a difficult and important job, especially against a powerful running team like Colgate. So far this season, the 280-pound Boyer has been solid in the middle. He has made 11 tackles to lead Princeton’s defensive linemen, and he recorded his first sack against Lehigh Sept. 26.

Colgate senior wide receiver Pat Simonds

While the running game may be the Raiders’ greatest strength, Simonds is a serious threat in the passing game, averaging 16.5 yards per catch this year. He has a knack for finding the end zone, catching six of the team’s seven passing touchdowns to date. Two weeks ago, Simonds torched Patriot League-rival Fordham for 156 yards on nine catches.

Around the Ivies

Two of the league’s four first-place teams will face off Oct. 10 when Harvard travels to Cornell. Dartmouth and Yale play the other all-Ivy game this week, in New Haven. The other Ivy teams will face Patriot League opponents: Penn hosts Bucknell; Columbia heads to Lafayette; and Brown faces Holy Cross in Providence.

Ancient eight

A programming note for Ivy football fans — 8: Ivy League Football and America, a documentary written and co-produced by PAW senior writer Mark F. Bernstein ’83, will make its PBS debut Oct. 11 at 3 p.m. on Philadelphia’s WHYY. In New England, the film will air on NESN Oct. 14 at 2:30 p.m.

Final quote

On the quick turnaround between the Columbia and Colgate games: “You get a chance to at least erase a bad memory. But we’ve got a lot of work to do … to make sure that we play better.”